Food Preservation and Additives Quiz

Sweetening Agents

• Used to mask unpleasant tastes
• Sucrose is commonly used between pH 4 and 8 and combined with polyols
• Liquid glucose is made through starch hydrolysis

Antioxidants

• Prevent drug degradation from oxidation
• Examples include vitamin E, vitamin C, butylated hydroxyanisole, butylated hydroxytoluene

Antimicrobial Agents

• Effective against gram-positive and gram-negative microorganisms
• Examples include sodium benzoate, sorbates, methyl paraben, propyl paraben

Preservative/Chelating Agents

• Prevent formulation degradation by forming complexes with ingredients
• Examples include EDTA, polyphosphates, and citric acid

Natural Preservatives

• Derived from plants, minerals, and animals
• Neem oil, sodium chloride, lemon, and honey are examples

Artificial Preservatives

• Chemically synthesized
• Examples include benzoates, sodium benzoate, sorbates, propionates, and nitrites

Ethyl Alcohol

• Bactericidal in aqueous solutions at concentrations between 60% and 95% (v/v)
• Optimum concentration is 70% (v/v)
• Inactivated by nonionic surfactants and ineffective against bacterial spores

Flavoring Agents

• Often heat-sensitive and volatile
• Typically used at 0.5-0.75% concentration
• Choices depend on patient preference and age, with children often preferring sweeter preparations
• Storage temperature should be between 15-30°C with 45% relative humidity

Tocopherol

• Alpha tocopherol is a source of vitamin E and a commercially available preservative
• Beta, delta, and gamma tocopherol are more effective antioxidants
• Used in pharmaceutical products at 0.001-0.05% (v/v) concentration

Sodium Benzoate

• Used as a preservative effective at 0.02-0.5% in oral medicines, 0.5% in parenteral products, and 0.1-0.5% in cosmetics
• Effective over a narrow pH range
• Preferred to benzoic acid due to higher solubility
• Can impart an unpleasant taste

Potassium Benzoate

• Preservative efficacy increases as pH decreases
• Most effective below pH 4.5
• Undissociated benzoic acid may produce a perceptible taste at very low pH

Methyl Paraben

• Most effective against yeasts and molds across a wide pH range
• Broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity at 2-5%
• Preservative efficacy improved by the addition of propylene glycol (2-5%) or combined with other parabens
• Used as an alternative to sodium benzoate when low sodium content is desirable

Propyl Paraben

• Typically used in water-based cosmetics
• Acts as an antifungal and antimicrobial agent

Unit Operations

• Involves a physical change or chemical transformation
• Examples include separation, crystallization, evaporation, filtration, polymerization, isomerization, and other reactions
• Objectives include transforming substances from one form to another

Objectives and Applications of Unit Operations

• Transform various forms of substances from a fluid